The Inevitable
by Stialyna
Summary: Lucas' decision and what lead to it. Summer rain or fire? ONE SHOT (Please review even if you leave it under anonymous, it would be much appreciated).


**The Inevitable**

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 _ **AN**_ _: I do not own the characters or the plot of GMW. I hope I fixed all the errors, but if you spot one, don't hesitate to tell me. Also, please review, I'd like to know your opinions like, 'was the character too OOC?' and 'did I do this fandom justice?' :p You know authors crave reviews, we are suckers for them, haha._

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 **PLEASE READ**

 **2nd AN:** I didn't set out writing this ONE SHOT to pick a side on the shipping war that's happening between Rucas/Liley and Lucaya fans. I wrote this in the hopes that some of the moments/scenes not mentioned would not be used to fuel the fire that's happened and may still continue to happen. I'm not saying that people's opinions don't matter, but some are just very...unwise to listen to. That being said, this was why I named this 'The Inevitable'. Inevitably, if it is meant to happen it will happen, and people shouldn't fight over things this badly when at the end of the day, they are characters that are written for us to enjoy. We should sit back and enjoy. Additionally, when I looked up on this shipping war, I had also come across blogs where I didn't think the justification of the ship was valid. For either ship. I wrote this in the hopes that **a)** my frustrations on the matter were released through non-violent means, **b)** I could finally share some of my own perceptions on relationships that made some of those points I've read invalid, and **c)** I wanted to finally see one fanfiction out there in the GMW fandom, where we don't know who Lucas picks, but where we get to see his thinking process and what he believes he needs and wants that lead to his decision. Whether Maya or Riley, let the boy/man decide for himself, and not by others, on who he should be with. Maybe he didn't choose Riley or Maya in my ONE SHOT, I never tagged Riley or Maya in this. With how allusive I was to show his decision, it all boils down to this:

 **1.** This is about LUCAS' decision. There won't be a follow up on either LUCAYA or RUCAS/LILEY conclusion because this is a one shot. (I admit that I didn't call it this, but it was labelled complete! *hands in the air as a sign of surrender*).

 **2.** I am not taking sides, I did at one point but I've come to see the positives and negatives of both, so...meh, I give up on taking sides. Plus, all this anticipation for the end of Season 3 is giving my anxiety.

 **3.** Please don't hate me. (*Wide eyed* because she knows how crazy fans can be, including herself).

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There will always be a time in a person's life, where they will need to choose between two things. Whether people, objects, a decision that would change your life, it is just the nature of being that encapsulates us all. So when it came for Lucas Friar to decide between the 'Pretty Brunette' or the 'Blonde Beauty', of course, his indecision continued to mount until...well, if it seemed like anything, he'd erupt like Mt Farkle once did. Did he want the relationship with a passion that would take your breath away with an adventure he was once acclaimed for? Or, did he want something simple that left him calm in a warmth sprinkled with the unknown? Fire or summer rain? That was how others described the triangle, but there was something else they didn't know or wouldn't see. Simplicity was never the course for love as to distinctly separate the two relationships as their classmates had done. Even with their closest friends agreeing to label it 'Summer Rain or Fire', Lucas could clearly see that they were trying to grasp the elusive reality of the two different equations to the triangle.

"Crrrrreeeeekk." The front door opened and his mother stepped through. She fluidly swept her coat onto the hook and took a second glance at her son. To her, she could see the change and turmoil that grew since the trip to the ranch. She had hoped he would resolve whatever troubled him, apparently not: this called for Motherly advice.

"Hey honey, why so down?" She sat next to him on the couch and wrapped him in her arms. He hesitated with a breath and she stroked his head. "You can tell me anything, ask anything. You know that, right? What's been bothering you?"

"Uh, well...um…" Lucas didn't know where to start, even whether he could start talking to his mother about girls. His cheeks began to warm as he twiddled his thumbs.

"Is this about girls, honey?" He spluttered and Annabel Friar began to laugh.

"Mum!"

"Let me guess, Maya and Riley? How is Maya's eating habits nowadays? I hope she learnt a thing or two from those wholesome muffins." A sly look was exchanged, and the mother-son duo burst forth with giggles. At the time, they had known of Maya's stereotypes, so the two had played well into the role, much to the firecracker's ire.

A pensive mood fell on Lucas as he thought over his mum's words. She guessed, was he that transparent? If so, why wasn't making the decision any easier? "Yeah, it's the both of them. They like me, and I'm not sure what I feel for them. I know I've liked Riley from the beginning, but Maya…" She was a bombshell of a surprise when Riley brought up her liking him. The real surprise - and truthfully what confused him the most - was Riley's opinion that he was like a brother to her. What even was that? Riley became an enigma to him. Weeks of her charade as his sister (those punches hurt from such a small thing), then New Years, he thought he knew her but she still managed to surprise him. Nothing in that relationship was as simple as people assumed. Or boring. So Lucas told his mum everything. From Maya's teasing, his and Riley's tiptoeing right till that very moment where he really needed an adult's advice.

His mum looked at him with understanding when he finished. His breath of relief could be heard across the room, as it was a huge deal for him not to be looked upon as immature. This was important to him. Who was he going to be with? "I can't tell you who is better for you. I especially can't tell you who to choose. But I can tell you what a relationship is about, and maybe that will help you decide who you like more as a partner. I've found that it is entirely impossible to 'like-like' - as you kids say nowadays - two people at the same time. Not in the way you know right now or acknowledge. Is that okay?"

Lucas felt conflicted. Was this even going to help him? Should he listen? Anything right now is worth a shot, so he shot a fleeting smile to his mum. "Yeah, Mum, I understand. At the end of the day, it is my relationship with them, I'm just glad that you're so understanding and willing to talk to me about this instead. Can you imagine me talking to Dad about liking two girls? He'd be less helpful than Pappy Joe!"

"That's what I'm here for, Luke. Shall I start?" He promoted her to do so with a brisk nod. "If I've ever learnt anything like I just told you, it is impossible to romantically like two people at the same time. There is the romantic attraction and there is the physical attraction. I know that your body-"

"Mum!" Lucas was mortified. He didn't know that this would include that.

"Calm your trot, this part is important. We have to talk about all aspects if you really want to know which girl is yours. Now don't interrupt me and listen.

"When I was dating your father, I met a friend of his at a party and there was just... Something about him that drew me in. He was a breath of fresh air to the normalcy I had with your dad, shy, mannered just as great, and very charismatically driven. Every time I was in the same room as him from then on, I found myself closer to him than your father. Every look felt like I was falling into his inescapable eyes. That day, I almost had a 'moment' with that friend, but something stopped me."

Lucas squirmed in his seat. Uh, were parents supposed to share these things with their kids? The need to resolve this triangle, however, overrode his uncomfortableness, so he bore on. Noticing Lucas' determination, Annabel smiled softly; her little boy was growing into a man.

"I broke it off with your dad."

"Wait, what?!"

"I thought that if someone else was capturing my attention, then I mustn't have liked or even loved your dad like I thought I did. After that, I tried to spend more time with Dad's friend. Keyword: tried. Trying to talk to him was the hardest thing I had to do. Whenever someone was with us, we could talk just fine. Without, well, let's say no one was fighting for room to talk."

A flash of brown hair to blond, then smoothies over his head came into the forefront of his mind.

"Thinking back on it, I realised how stupid and naive I was. You see, Luke, with your dad, I found a relationship. With his friend, I found attraction. Just like you are now, I was changing then, and I didn't understand that what I was feeling for the friend was a just physical attraction. What I thought to be a spiritual, deep beginnings of a real connection was false. I learnt that those types of connections were rare and only formed when two people with mutual interest, took the time and had the patience to understand one another. Once that sunk into my head, I thought I had lost your father. He was dating you see, but I talked to him and we both realised that no matter who we thought we liked, it was each other that we held on to. After that, things fell into place."

"So what I feel for Maya is a just physical attraction?" He wished it was that simple, but his mum obliterated that dream.

"No. I'm not here to tell you what's what. I'm here to give you _some_ understanding." He thought he heard her mutter, 'Some! Yeah, you'll need more than some,' but he wasn't quite sure. "At some level, you both have found a level of connection to each other - whether romantic, who knows - from the time that you've gotten to know in your friend group. It wasn't like when I met your dad's friend. That was purely a physical attraction."

"What else should I know about relationships, Mum?"

"You caught on, I'm very glad you asked. A good romantic relationship that will last, is if you realise that when and where you become an item is based on you and your partner's decision and no one else's. Falling to peer pressure is never great at any age, all it will do is make the pair uncomfortable with one another. It is also important that you can trust one another in decisions made. God knows your dad has made some awful choices, but a key to any relationship, especially if you want a romantic one, is being there for the person you like, the person you love. Nothing shows greater care and love than to stand by them despite how much you worry or disagree. In the end, the people that are by your side, helping you get back up from any fall, are the special ones." Lucas smiled. "But relationships aren't just about reliability." His smile fell over sharp lines. "Someone can still care for you that they can't bear to see you hurt. It really depends."

First this then that. Get your mind sorted then scramble it like it doesn't matter that you're getting shaken about. Lucas Friar mind update: cannot compute.

"Relationships are always complicated." Annabel raised her eyebrow at her son's puzzled face.

"What about the way the two people in a relationship act, Mum?" Maybe this answer would tell him.

"The two people should have learnt from their time together, that they aren't there to tear each other down, nor are they there to put false images into each other's heads about who they are or should be. The two people who are in a relationship, and not just attracted to one another, are the ones who can truly see who each other are as individuals and allow them to separate from the image people have for them. You have to feel free to be yourself, without thinking whether they'll throttle you for something you'll say. You have to know that neither of you is perfect, but that when you are together, that's the closest either one of you will be perfect because you make each other better people. In each other's eyes, you are perfect for you give them all they'd ever need to be loved and to love in return."

"Aren't I too young to love, Mum?" Annabel smiled to her son and softly replied with knowing eyes.

"You are never too young to love, or don't you love me, Lucas Joseph Friar?!"

"O-of course I love you, mum!"

"Then that answers your question. You'll know when you love someone when you miss their smile or quirks, anything you've found of them you've come to especially love from them alone. Whether it's talking, physical contact, but it will be different from the moments you miss of your friends, because for some unexplainable reason," she placed her hand on his chest where they both feel his heartbeat, "It hurts here. Right there, is who you're supposed to listen to when overthinking has gotten you into a rut. Right there, is the reason your dad and I were able to have the happy marriage we have today with such a wonderful son. Sense and sensibility. Use them both and don't be afraid to let your heart's opinion speak for itself. Thinking things through is fine, but it's here where we find ourselves."

Green orbs met green. Knowledge passed between them and it suddenly came altogether within Lucas. "Thanks, Mum. I know what to do now, I gotta go." Before Annabel could ask, the sound of the door closing reverberated with the strength of his decision. A small tear fell from her dancing eyes. He was grown. For someone his age, feeling that strongly and wanting to make the right decision between two girls, she wouldn't be surprised if the girl he was going to choose became his first love. Maybe, this will even turn out to be true love. Oh boy, Annabel Friar was ageing, ageing well but she was beginning to feel it settle. Already thinking of her boy falling in love, possibly finding the love if his life at this age! Preposterous. Was it really when he was so… 'Just leave it, Friar.' She thought, then sighed when she thought about dinner.

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Lucas barged into the open plan of the Matthews' apartment. "I've made a decision!" The moment it dawned on him that Mr and Mrs Matthews were with Mrs Hart without the girls, their comments and demands fell on deaf ears. He slumped onto the bench and looked up. Riley's demeanour was reflected straight through Mrs Matthews.

"What did you decide?" Topanga zealously exclaimed. "What did you decide, Chuckiieee?"

Looking around at the enquiring faces, Lucas gulped. It suddenly didn't seem that simple anymore. Would Riley smile like this when he tells them of his decision?

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" _Choose_." Farkle's voice echoed in his conscience. He had to choose. Zay was right, it wasn't just a jelly bean experiment. He made a choice, it was discarded, and now that he knows who the real Maya and Riley are, he was back to the place of limbo.

' _Someone you can rely on… Be free to be yourself…someone you miss right here_ ,' he grasped his chest, ' _when you don't see a smile or quirk... Anything you've found of them you've come to especially love from them alone. You'll know when… When you are together, that's the closest either one of you will be perfect because you make each other better people. In each other's eyes, you are perfect for you give them all they'd ever need to be loved and to love in return_."

He can only think of one person in the entire world that fit all those things and more. Even the thought made him feel fuller, more completed by something he has yet to figure out. Maybe she wasn't who some people saw him with in the long run, but he knew a side of her that not everyone got to saw. Something mysterious in her eyes for him to discover. A vulnerability that she only let him see, not even to her other friends. A fire that was different to the one portrayed outwards, something just for him when they were alone. They were still young, they had time to be fully comfortable, not just emotionally, like all the partnered grownups in their lives. They might not be perfect, but they were perfect for each other.

For once, Lucas felt he knew himself in this crazy teenage world he stepped into. For once, his decision was made and this time, nothing would change it. Fire? Summer rain?

He made his choice.


End file.
